EUROPOL ACCEPTS THE EUROPEAN
OMBUDSMAN'S RECOMMENDATIONS ON PUBLIC ACCESS TO DOCUMENTS

The European Law Enforcement Organisation
Europol has accepted the recommendation made
by European Ombudsman, Jacob Söderman,
that it should adopt rules on public access to its documents.

Europol director, Jürgen Storbeck,
told the Ombudsman on 6 July 2000 that Europol will apply the
same rules on public access to the documents it holds as the
Council of Ministers. He has already given the necessary instructions
to Europol staff. The public will be informed of the new policy
through Europol's web site at http://www.europol.eu.int.

The Europol Management Board will re-examine
the Europol rules in the light of the future outcome of discussions
on new rules for the Council, Commission and European Parliament
on public access to documents.

Notes for editors

Europol, based in the Netherlands at The
Hague, aims at improving the effectiveness and co-operation of
police forces in the Member States in preventing and combating
terrorism, unlawful drug trafficking and other serious forms
of international organised crime. Europol was brought within
the Ombudsman's mandate by the Treaty of Amsterdam.

The Ombudsman's draft recommendation to
Europol followed an own-initiative inquiry (OI/1/99/IJH) launched
by the Ombudsman in April 1999. As well as Europol, the inquiry
covered the European Central Bank, the Community Plant Variety
Office and the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work,
which have also adopted rules on access to their documents.